The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1887-02-19


ing read of savage Indians, prairie fires,
grizzly bears, rattlesnakes, etc. That
seemed to argue that he would not go
West. Would he go North or SouthP
was helped out of my dilemma in a
curious way. l had been at every
steamboat Office and railroad depot,
meeting with 40 success, and was stand
ing in front of the Second National
Bank when a farmer-looking man ac-
costed me with:
"What do you say about this billP
I say it's good and the old woman says
it's badP"
1t was five he had, and the "old
woman" sat in the wagon on the oppo-
site side of the street.
"Why does she suspect it to be hadP"
/ asked, as l surveyed the bill.
"Well, it was give to me four or five
days ago by chap who rode out home
with us, had supper, and then cut
across to the railroad station.
shouldn't have charged him more than
seventy-fve cents at the most, and his
liberality seems queer"
Twas dead certain from his first words
that | had got track of my man, We
went into the bank to satisfy him that
the bill was all right, and then crossed
to the wagon. want to tell you that
country people are head and shoulders
above the average city residents in the
matter of observation and in remem-
bering what they see.
"Well, one reason why l suspected
this man." said the wife, twas because
his hair was dreadfully haggled and
then dyed. Such botch work you never
saw. His hair was all in streaks Of
black and red, and he'd got the dye OF
his ears and neck"
The fellow had tried to play smart in
leaving the city by one of the highways
but accident had revealed his trail. He
had taken the train at a station about
fifteen miles away, and he had foul
days the start of me. The first move
was to run out to the country station a
which he had taken the train. / there
found that he had made many inquiries
about the northern and western part O
the State, and had finally purchased ;
ticket for Fond du Lac. The description
of him was good, and was about t
buy ticket for the same place and taxi
train due in half an hour, when il
came a boy who had been there on til,
evening when Lane bought his ticket
He was a lad who helped around tn,
station, and it was plain that he had
good deal of native wit.
. Eyes, that chap bought ticket TO
Fond du Lac, but don't think he wen
there" replied the lad when l began t,
question him.
"What makes you think he did notp'
because" he answered, as he hand
ed down folder from the rack, "h
, was studying this route, which goes t.
Porta City. think he meant to tax
this folder along, but dropped it. Sc
how he has marked it with pencil"
{ So he had. He could run up to Water
town and go through by way of Beave
Dam. He had marked the time of al
r rival at the junction and of the arriva
| at Portage, and it could not be that h
e would take all that trouble to throv
e any one off his trail. There was no on
4 after him, and he could not argue tina
the boy would hold the marked folde
4 against him. therefore changed m
a route to Portage City, and at the juno
2 ton got track of my man. He had n
ticket, but had paid his fare in cash.
= was night and the state of his hair ha
/, not been noticed, but the conducte
d described Lanes general appearance
n and said that he had changed u twenty
o dollar bill for him. He might go n
g further than Beaver Dam, and l got o
n there and looked around for a fe
:. hours No trace of him had been haC
# and Twas at the depot to take the trail
r when a conversation between two youn
o men became interesting.
d "You ought to have told some body,
d protested one.
n "Yes, and been laughed at" reptile
% the other.
e "And he had ten thousand dollars?
IS Eyes, double that"
II "And he was counting it on IL
T. bedP"
n "Yes."
a "May be, but he was off early in IL
Is morning. Well, so long, Tom-here
e. the train"
1t The one who had seen some one coun
lie ing money was going west by n
re train, and l schemed to get seat wi
ID him and draw him out. He was
10 porter at one of the hotels in Portag
N and he had seen a guest answerir
is Lanes description counting such |
p of money that it covered half the be
n The porter had made his o5servatio
lie through the keyhole of the door, an
r. being ashamed of himself, had hesitate
K. to 90 to the landlord. The man h,